For many folks the last 30 days were an ordinary August like many others. Relaxed summer fun, while we wait for the new season to begin and for Dancing with the Stars to end. But to us August 2009 will stand as our quarter life crisis that caused us to quit our job before it killed our soul in order to focus on hockey blogging.

During Great Depression II.

We are that dumb

We have realized of late: it is better to fail at doing something you love then succeed at something you hate. Even if that shit pays you well and has an inattentive IT department that hasn’t noticed “user pr62 has 3.2 trillion hits on OilersNation in the past 12 months.” At the exact time that many folks are glad to have a job – we have unwisely left ours and are setting out on our very own.

It went over well with the roommates:

Wanye: (enters room, throws down luggage) I’m home gentlemen. I bring you three vessels loaded rich spices from exotic lands.

Roommate 1: (watching TV) Whatever, keep it down.

Wanye: And also I have quit my job.

Roommate 1: (watching TV) Whatever, keep it down.

Back to OilersNation World HQ

Having returned to the City last night, we immediately decided to lay in provisions for the long hard winter in a moment of Survivorman-esque planning. Never having to leave the house again, we were looking for commercial quantities of ready made meals, that require no added steps like adding milk. To our great joy we found a sale so massive that we had to go back to Wanye Manor and gather the roommates to assist in bringing our provisions back to the cave. $2 for a box of five granola bars? In this economy?

It boggles the mind:

Taking stock of the scene

Job quit, survival provisions stocked in the pantry, we set about seeing what’s what on the Nations. While we were busy losing our mind Jonathan Willis has turned into a three-a-day article beast, providing insight and interesting articles multiple times per day.

So you can imagine our shock and horror when we read this comment last night from local media personality Bob Stauffer:

No disrespect to Mr. Willis, but five JW stories on the front page of ON is at least three and probably four too many.
Given that JW has his own site do we really need all five lead stories on the ON site coming from someone who has no direct access to anybody that matters in hockey circles? Combine that with the fact that Jon resides in Mortheastern B.C., it can be argued he doesn’t really have a pulse for what is happening in Edmonton either. I can see getting Jon’s take once a week…but in this case I think less might be more.
Take Care
Bob Stauffer

Oh Bob. Really?

A few questions spring to mind:

1. Why bother?

What did Willis ever do to you? The guy is a gentleman who is busting his nuts in your field for a tenth the dough that you did when you started out. Rather than using your power and influence to cheer on emerging sports writers you have used it to shit on Willis publicly, in his home court we might add. Why bother?

2. What’s worse?

Having no access but saying something every day of interest or having plenty of access and rarely breaking news you know people are clamoring to hear?

See Bob, you who possesses both the bat phone number for Daryl Katz and the actual shoe size of Captain Ethan Moreau haven’t really used this power for any real good of late. Rather than calling out Willis for the stuff he talks about, you may want to look at yourself in the mirror and ask yourself about all of the stuff you haven’t talked about. Great stuff, interesting stuff you could discuss that you know people would want to know - except for the fact that it is easier to report the news that floats to the surface rather than do any real digging.

Compare if you dare, the portion of the media kicking it at well paid day jobs that haven’t done any real digging in years - to a guy like Willis who does nothing but dig – even though he has to dig for miles to find a glimmer of gold. There he is, day after day, grinding it out. When a guy like Willis gets that access that you refer to – watch out.

3. Willis is awesome

Jonathan Willis is a gentleman farmer, a scholar and an immediate recipient of any or all Wanye Organs ™ of his choice should he ever need a donor. The guy takes ridiculous amounts of shit from people but continues to churn away, steadfastly becoming a wicked writer in the process. Nothing but good will come to a man of his nature.

In closing, be on the ready Nation

We have walked through a few doors of late and no longer recognize our surroundings. We are out on our own, cushy job be damned and we are going to try to take it up a notch around here. We have a year’s supply of granola bars to fuel us and no longer have anything better to do than work on our dream: hard hitting independant NHL coverage.

And on that day when the Willises, Brownlees and Gregors of the world are so highly read from coast to coast that the NHL has no other option but to grant them full access over which they have little control, we shall put our feet on our desk, crack a Bud Light and declare the job well done.

Until then – it’s game time.

Blog so hard motherf**ckers try and find me.
Tweet me @wanyegretz provided it is about Jordan Eberle or babes. Find me on instagram for photos of donairs.

Given your writing prowess and attention to detail for such matters, it is curious that you didn't provide more details about how you quit your job. Did it involve bulldozers? A massive drinking binge, some gasoline and a match?

Do tell. It may help to sustain those of us who can only dream of quitting...

I compliment JW and MC79 for some of their statistical analysis and still get crapped on and called every name in the book for being the big bad (fat) wolf

Hey Bob, I'll cut you some slack for being a newbie, but when you say something that is so funny and a little self-depricating at the same time, you have to say something like "sheds a single tear", or "sobs quietly into his pillow"... read some old posts from ol' Wayne, they don't call him the great one for nothing. And don't worry Bob, we judge not by the size of your belt, but by the size of your heart. (and the size of your open tab at DQ)

The guy [Willis] is a gentleman who is busting his nuts in your field for a tenth the dough that you did when you started out.

I can assure you that when Stauffer was trying to break into the Edmonton Sports Scene he was getting paid Bupkus too. The guy would do anything asked of him, usually for free. He would give Sexsmith, Brynn, Jason, anyone a hand with anything they asked. He did make a little side money working for Molstar -- Chyron work, visiting-TV stats, etc. He volunteered for the Eskimo games. Oh and whatever the hell Bears Hockey was paying him then, payment of which I believe is deferred to the year 2310. But it wasn't much, and without the Interwebby thingy being what it is today back then in the mid-90s, that was about all he could do. He worked long and hard, doing crap jobs for mostly peanuts and beer, and has paid a shitload of dues to get to where he is today.

No disrespect to JW, who we all love dearly, and none to you Wanye, but I didn't think it was right to misconstrue how Bob, and many sports-types break into the biz.

Well, as of last week, he was still working at some Thai bar or something, still trying to collect every STD known to man and probably invent some new ones, and had recently experimented with some kind of Thai super drug.
And he got a hilariously lame tattoo on his foot. It's the kind of lame where it boarders on awesome.

I don't post on the site much, however I read all posts each day, and enjoy all of the writers. Each has a different style and slant on the way they see all things Oil related, and all voice their opinions, some stronger than others, then they give us a chance. That's what makes this a good site.

But many of you, and you know who you are, crossed the line big-time by making things personal by insulting Stauffer for voicing his opinion on the frequency of posts by JW. That's what he was doing, voicing an opinion. He wasn't saying JW is a crappy writer, he was saying that he would like to see some more variety, and I'm sure others had been thinking the same. I know I was. No where did he slam JW's ability, he just stated something that for now is true, JW is not as connected as at least two of the writers on this site. So before you go flapping your lips with offside comments that in all likelihood you would never say to the man's face, check you testosterone at the door and give your index finger a break.

I have never personally met Stauffer, so it's not as if I'm sticking up for a buddy or even an acquaintance, but give it a rest. Truth of the matter is that everyone of us with 51% of in tact brain cells would have accepted Stauffer's offer to go inside. For years he had the best sports show this town's ever seen and the only reason he left was to chase the dream that he had for years, and busted his rear-end to make a reality. Are you gonna blame him for that? Grow up.

No disrespect to Mr. Willis, but five JW stories on the front page of ON is at least three and probably four too many. Around July 1st there was some quality breking-coverage type stories getting done on ON. Given that JW has his own site do we really need all five lead stories on the ON site coming from someone who has no direct access to anybody that matters in hockey circles? Combine that with the fact that Jon resides in Mortheastern B.C., it can be argued he doesn’t really have a pulse for what is happening in Edmonton either. I can see getting Jon’s take once a week…but in this case I think less might be more.

Now if you're JW, do you read that and go "Golly-gee, I think Bob likes me"? Some of Bob's opinion perhaps should have been left out of a public forum if he didn't wish to invite debate.

@ sns2
Ummm ya, what Ender The Dragon said (side note: I've always read "Enter" until just now typing it). While some comments against Bob got personal and out of line, most targeted his comment. Which is fair game since he offered it unsolicited. He could have easily said he wanted more from the other writers without targeting JW for his work.

Well fellows you have said your piece.
I compliment JW and MC79 for some of their statistical analysis and still get crapped on and called every name in the book for being the big bad B(fat)
Bob Stauffer

We like to debate roster needs. We like to evaluate players. We like info by which to predict future player performance.

We don't like reading about Stortini's summer, Gilbert's home rennovations, or the Oilers and Friends Soft Ball Classic.

I bet this site gets more traffic than the official site and it has the suits concerned.

@ Bob Stauffer:

Instead of being critical of the content offerd on THIS site, take a good hard look at the FLUFF being pushed on yours. Maybe it's time to use your "direct access" to generate something worth reading. It's funny to me that a hobbiest blogger from B.C. does a better job than you, and you're high priced team, regularly offering fresh and interseting Oiler analysis and discussion. You have the edge; Up YOUR game.

Well fellows you have said your piece.
I compliment JW and MC79 for some of their statistical analysis and still get crapped on and called every name in the book for being the big bad (fat) wolf…with some guys attributing a quote to me that came from someone else.
You have a fine site here, unquestionably relevant; just felt you needed more than range of opinion in your writers on the front page.
I would like to wish you all the best of luck moving forward.
P.S. the Oilers have added some toughness for the farm by signing a legit AHL tough guy who has had a couple cups of coffee in the NHL.
Take Care
Bob Stauffer

Yes, it's true that the range of opinion should be questionable when there is an overwhelming dominance by one writer, but consider that the Oilogosphere is very large compared to other hockey markets and that people converge to read JW for no particular reason other than the fact that he provides such great, objective, independent writing. Opinion and fact seem pretty well distinguished in Willis' articles.

Trust me, the amount of reading available online is boundless and there's good reasons ON gets the vote of confidence.

@ Travis Dakin:
If you want to make anything awesome, just add a dash of jeanshorts.
And if you want to make it super homosexual and awkward, add baggedmilk.
Dammit, it’s not nearly as fun when he’s not here to make fun of me back.
*cries himself to sleep clutching a life sized pillow of baggedmilk*

Nothing like Jorts and a mullet to make the day brighter...preferably, the Jorts should have had a past life as a full pair of jeans and be as frayed and as short as possible.

Sorry Wayne, I need to make a comment to Bob Stauffer and then I will go back in to full lerker mode.

@ Bob Stauffer

Bob, I have been a fan of yours since I first started listening to you on my 60-90 minute commute home from work, three - four years ago. I was a little apprehensive (about your reporting perspective) when you broad casted that you taking a job with Oilers. At the time I chalked it up to Katz doing what the best business people do and surround themselves with the best talent available (and when you were hired you were the best talent available).

Well, the year has come and gone and I must admit I am missing the passionate views of hockey, in general and the Oilers specifically that you shared to the Oiler faithful.

For three hours daily I would listen to your show and be amazed, how in the middle of summer especially, you could still find time to share new views and commentary on the Oilers.

I am left with two questions. 1) Has that passion gone? and 2) Was I right in my apprehension of your reporting perspective?

After your comments yesterday and today I believe I can answer both.
Answer 1) No. The passion is still there. I just didn't like the way it came across. I discovered this site when I no longer had your commentary to seek my Oiler information and observation fix.

I must admit some of the comments that were posted in response to your comment were a little on the outrageous side. Nevertheless I did have similar feelings to your comment. I felt they were a little out of line given the lack of (my perceived) reporting you have done lately.

Apparently, or so I've been told, you show up on Dan Tencer's evening program. I'm sorry to say I don't normally listen to the radio in the evening. So I would have no idea if that is where you are now reporting.

JW has, in my mind, taken up the mantle that you left when you moved on to greener pastures. This is not to be taken as a slight (as you both have differnt styles of reporting) but as an observation as you became very quiet when you moved companies. (How many as's does that last sentence have?)

Answer 2) Yes. In my sphere of the Oil/Hockey blogs and news sites which includes ON, Lowetide, MC97, From the Rink, David Staples, Copper and Blue, Oilers.com, NHL.com, TSN, Hockey's Futures and Behind the Net. Your voice has diminished, especially during the off season.

I was truly hoping that your challenging style would give some great depth in the Oiler broad cast booth. There were flashes during the season but something was lacking. I am hoping that you are going to bring some of the passion when you take over the big chair in the next year or two. I can honestly see you leading the Oiler broadcast team for the next 30 years. I just hope that you bring some of the spark you shared with your fans, when you were on the air at 1260.

@ JW
You have a gift of being a gifted and prolific writer. I don't know how you can cover so many ideas in the sites you post on.

A question for you. You haven't been posting as frequently on C&B, is there a posting limit or is there an agreement between you and the other bloggers you share the site with?

@ Wayne Gretz
Sorry about the novella when I post. I get my quota in one post a month.

Been a while since I posted, and I stumbled upon this crazy thread. Glad to see that things don't change much...I mean, Wanye's still on the top of his game (sheesh, some people peak at odd times), and JS is still driving us down roads that Amber wouldn't touch. :)

Tonight, after the second beer, I turned to my wife and said, "Why isn't there a #@*$ing hocky game on tonight?" She muttered something about little ears, summertime, and walked away.

I agree with Bob 100%.
If ON is supposed to be the end all of Oilers blogs then they should treat it that way. Instead, at times, I read crap like this entry to which it sounds like a clique of wanna-be-know-it-alls that can't stand the least bit of critisism.
A lot of the material you write critisizes people you may never meet. Imagine what you'd write if Quinn sounded off like you did in this blog from one of your comments: we'd all be calling him a baby. You Gretz, sound like a turd suckling baby in this entry.
If you choose the best writers to blog about the Oil then keep it to that and leave your adventures of beer drinking and baseball games for another blog called, 'The Elite Bloggers of Oiler Writers With Nothing Else Productive To Do.

JW has his style and at times it is appropriate but really ask yourself, has ANYTHING he said during this slow summer really fug'n mattered at all?
When Bob talks, I listen. When you or JW write I waste time during coffee breaks while the boys choose to play cribbage.